Matrix Survival: One random treasure chest per day

Chapter 512 Glass Longsword, Quality Unknown

People often say that time heals all wounds.

Regardless of love or hate.

However, in the world of Demon Blade Thirst for Blood, time is merely an additive that amplifies and ferments.

The hatred for the first wielder who abandoned it did not fade with time; instead, it became more deeply ingrained.

It's like a pot of wine; the longer it's stored, the better it becomes.

why?
why?

Why did you leave me there?
Owner……

Dao Dao is really scared...

The Twisted Land is filled with negative energy that fundamentally affects all conscious beings with sentience.

Despair and fear corrupted the once innocent sword spirit, giving rise to an intense and intense hatred deep within its heart.

Hatred for the man with the knife!
Hatred for every person who wields a knife!
Even though the second person to possess it brought it out of that place, its hatred did not diminish in the slightest.

Over the long years, it has learned a lot.

Playing tricks, betraying, being cunning, deceiving, manipulating, and being cruel—these are all the tricks it used on those who wielded the knife.

Every user who obtained it met a bad end.

Some died from its impromptu play during battle; if the blade had been slightly off-target, the vulnerable wielder would have perished on the spot.

Sometimes, one dies from a lack of willpower, having their mental world destroyed by its whispers, turning them into a mindless, killing machine.

Some people with overly strong will may have their psychological defenses forcibly broken through by it, and it will actively control them step by step toward the abyss.

Every person who wielded the knife met a tragic end.

Without exception, at the moment of their death, the Demon Blade Thirst for Blood drew immense pleasure from the despair of its opponents.

It is very satisfying.

It was as if with each person it killed who wielded the knife, it was taking revenge on the first ruler.

Satisfy!

Sometimes, during the gaps between finding the next person to wield the knife, it will recall the very moment it was born, the first time it truly experienced this world.

Sometimes it can't help but wonder, if its first owner hadn't abandoned it, would it have become something else?
Perhaps, I will grow into the sharpest blade in his hand, accompanying him to defeat one powerful enemy after another, and drink the blood of the strong?

Or will it be shattered by a more powerful weapon, thus fulfilling its ultimate mission as a weapon?
'Master, please don't abandon Dao Dao, okay? Dao Dao will definitely be obedient from now on...'

The Demon Blade Thirst for Blood uttered a plea, whether directed at Li Zheng or at the first wielder from countless years ago, it was unclear.

The cries of pleas were like the mournful cry of a cuckoo, filled with endless sorrow and despair, as well as deep grievances.

It's as if a child who has been treated unfairly has abandoned their dignity and compromised, which makes people feel sorry for them.

Li Zheng absorbed the mournful cry, but remained unmoved. His hand, holding the memory release device that was stripping the demonic blade of its memories, remained as steady as a mountain, and his face was cold and stern.

He wouldn't fall for such a trick so easily.

During the time he used the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade, he had already seen through this evil blade and knew how dangerous it was.

This is a venomous snake, patiently waiting for the moment to strike a fatal blow.

"Huh? Oh no!"

Li Zheng's expression suddenly changed, and the memory release device in his hand lit up with a red light!
[The memory release unit is almost full. If you wish to continue stripping work, please replace the device promptly.]

The memories accumulated by the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade over countless years could not be completely stripped away by a single memory release device?

Then let's have one more!
Li Zheng gritted his teeth, quickly took out a new memory releaser, instantly adjusted the mode, and replaced the previous one that was about to be filled.

The second memory releaser started smoothly with almost no interruption.

【01:09】

Li Zheng glanced at the notification; a memory release device had been working for about eighteen seconds, and he didn't know how many memories it had stripped away in total.

Looking into his hand, he saw a memory release device with its storage area completely full. Perhaps because it had absorbed the memories of the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade, a large number of intricate blood-red thorn patterns appeared on the surface of the memory release device.

Memory Releaser (Hatred)
Status: Full (can only release internal memory, cannot be used for other purposes, will be damaged after one release)

Description: It contains memories filled with hatred, and although it only accounts for one-third of the total memories, its volume is astonishing.

One has to wonder whether the fragile equipment is sufficient to imprison this memory for long.

Old Pu: Get that thing away from my eyes!

Li Zheng frowned even more as he put away the memory release device.

The entire memory release device only holds one-third of the memories. Just how long has this thing existed? How can it be so powerful?

Won't its memories be forgotten?

'Master...the blade...it hurts so much...' The pitiful voice of the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade echoed in my heart. The thick, pure blood light on the blade suddenly became unstable, flickering like a lamp with an aging circuit.

'Master...Master, please spare Dao Dao?'

'Dao Dao will definitely listen...'

'Dao Dao isn't a bad kid...'

As the pleading voices reached his heart, Li Zheng's cold heart began to waver, and the thought of letting the demonic blade go arose uncontrollably.

"This guy is using weird tricks again!" Li Zheng bit his tongue hard, and the brief pain brought him back to his senses. He immediately used his mental power to create an isolation layer around himself.

The next instant, the pitiful pleas disappeared completely and could no longer be heard.

To Li Zheng's surprise, a series of ellipses representing confusion appeared on the Preys' Eye's display panel...

【……………………………】

The ellipsis was drawn out quite a bit, and it ended with the sentence: "What's going on? Is it getting dark?"

The text is short, but the amount of information is enormous!

Li Zheng was shocked. He never expected that in the process of dealing with the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade, he would discover a way to restrain Lao Pu!
'host……'

Huh? It's light again? What just happened?

..............................

Why is it dark again?

confirmed!
By enveloping his entire body with his mental energy, he was actually able to influence Old Pu's detection data, and even his observation channel was forcibly shut down!
The brief moment when I was freed from mental constraints is proof of that!
I just don't know if only my own mental power can affect Old Pu, or if all mental interference can affect him.

and many more……

Li Zheng's eyes suddenly narrowed as a scene from the fishing competition in the void area flashed through his mind.

Back when the invisible demon was hiding in the spiritual world, Old Pu couldn't observe it. He could only vaguely sense a pressure emanating from that thread, thus reminding himself that there was an unseen danger around him!

So mental strength is Old Pu's natural enemy?
Strange thing...

Even the metal doors in the matrix couldn't stop its detection, yet it was affected by its own not-so-strong mental power?

Or is it that his own mental strength is Old Pu's true nemesis, and that the mental strength of other targets, unless it reaches a certain level or hides directly in the mental world like the Invisible Demon, doesn't actually have that much of an impact on Old Pu?
After his expression changed several times, Li Zheng decided to conceal his discovery and prevent Lao Pu from noticing.

Following the text displayed by Lao Pu, he asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"

I...I can't see! It's pitch black all around!
No, I can't see you completely, I can still see you.

But I can see nothing but you!

It was clear that this was the first time Old Pu had experienced something like this, and he seemed quite panicked.

Li Zheng offered a guess, misleadingly asking, "Could it be because the Demon Blade is thirsty for blood?"

【have no idea!

I can't see it!
I can't observe it!

I can't even see your hands anymore!

Li Zheng was surprised by Lao Pu's appalling performance. He was just blind, so why was he so panicked? Right, wasn't this guy used to be able to communicate with him directly through his thoughts?
Why can't I even read my own thoughts this time?

wrong!

It seems that ever since he went to the Dark Realm, Old Pu has never tried to read his thoughts without permission; he only gets a response when he actively contacts it.

So is it because my mental strength is different now, or because the intensity of my mental strength has increased?
Li Zheng pondered for a few seconds and decided it should be the former.

Because he had only been to the Dark Realm a few times, and had not practiced the mental training method that Xu had devised for him many times, his strength had not increased much.

So it's highly likely that he went to the Dark Realm and came into contact with the Void or some kind of substance within the Dark Realm, causing changes in his mental power that he himself was unaware of, which enabled him to do what he did.

However, this is also a good thing. Li Zheng was previously troubled by not having a way to restrain Lao Pu, and that he had no privacy in what he did.

This solves the problem once and for all; if we do anything naughty in the future, we won't have to worry about Old Pu spying on us.

perfect!

When I get back, I'll try wrapping my eyes with my mental energy. Maybe then Old Pu won't even be able to see the rest of his body!
Perfect plus!

Li Zheng never expected that, in order to resist the mind-altering influence of the Demon Blade's thirst for blood, he would inadvertently discover how to switch Old Pu on and off.

Solving two problems at once, Perfect Pro!

Time passed second by second, and the second memory release device was also filled. The moment the red light came on, it was replaced by Li Zheng.

Similar to the previous memory releaser, this memory deprivation also involves one-third of the total.

In other words, Li Zheng didn't keep any of the three memory release devices he opened from the treasure chest last time; he used them all up.

However, the three diamond-level items were not wasted. At least during the period when the third memory releaser was in effect, the blood-red luster on the demonic blade visibly dimmed.

As the space of the last memory releaser gradually filled up, the knife revealed its original form before it became the Bloodthirsty Demon Blade.

The Bloodthirsty Demon Blade is composed entirely of black and red, with intricate and mysterious patterns engraved on its surface, which seem to be the medium through which its power is carried.

If the pattern is destroyed, the consciousness within the knife will die.

Conversely, when the consciousness dies, the patterns gradually fade away.

After the black and red colors faded, what appeared in front of Li Zheng was a crystal-clear longsword that emitted a magnificent light.

'Awooo!! No!!'

The Demon Blade, thirsting for blood, was on the verge of collapse. It let out a final, unwilling and venomous roar, and the last trace of black and red on the hilt disappeared.

click!
Once the memory extraction was complete, the third memory releaser automatically stopped operating, emitting a crisp sound.

"ended."

With a complex expression, Li Zheng dispersed the spiritual energy gathered around him, and Old Pu, now free from restraint, 'saw the light again' and finally became active once more.

【Air!
Light!

particle!

Metal!

wall!

ground!

and also……

You idiot, standing there motionless with a knife in your hand!

The wonderful feeling of having access to information is truly... no, it's something I miss...

Old Pu wasn't stupid. He only panicked for a moment when he first lost control of the information. He quickly realized that he must have been the one who couldn't see anything.

But what can it do?

As an ability possessed by another being, it has a strange consciousness, yet it is unable to resist.

I can only bear with it.

However, judging from its long-absent display of mocking texts against Li Zheng, it is very dissatisfied with the means by which Li Zheng has restricted it.

It's as if someone has taken away some of your rights.

Well, that right seems to be called 'freedom'.

It seems I need to be more "dedicated" in the future, otherwise, if Li Zheng gets unhappy one day and seals it away permanently, how painful would that be?
So without Li Zheng's prompting, it obediently presented the purified 'Demon Blade' attributes to Li Zheng.

[Glassy Longsword]
Rank: Unknown

Type: Weapon

Description: A cold weapon forged using various rare biological materials, which once gave rise to a twisted soul.

Now the soul has been purified, and it has returned to its former pure and flawless state.

Someday in the future, perhaps it will be able to generate a new consciousness, but it will no longer be 'it'.

Old Pu: Be careful, it's very sharp. Once it loses the restraint of its soul, it doesn't care whether you are its master or not. As long as you dare to touch the blade to yourself, it will dare to tear open your flesh and cut your body.

If your technique isn't consistent enough or your knife skills aren't refined enough, never use it as a kitchen knife. Who knows if you might accidentally shred the cutting board or something else.

"Master, please don't abandon me again, okay?"

—Dao Dao

The attributes haven't changed much. Apart from the name and appearance of the sword itself reverting to the previous state of the Bloodthirsty Demon Sword, only the grade column shows an 'unknown' status.

It might be due to the soul inside the blade, because the memory releaser only stripped it of all its memories, essentially turning it into a 'blank'.

It's somewhat similar to the concept of a person in a vegetative state; we'll see when it regains consciousness before we can reassess the knife's grade.

Li Zheng weighed the knife in his hand and carefully sensed it, discovering that the changes were not limited to what was obviously visible.

In the past, when he held the Demon Blade, even though he was very restrained from letting the bloodlust of the Demon Blade affect him, he would still have a faint bloodthirsty impulse.

Now, as I hold the glass longsword, I can actually feel a sense of righteousness and peace emanating from it.

This is as absurd as standing in the toilet and smelling the aroma of food.

A weapon meant for killing has somehow become like a 'saint'...

That's absolutely bullshit!
Aside from this highly criticized change, the longsword itself has also been significantly weakened.

The most obvious point is that Li Zheng will no longer be able to use the forty-meter-long blood-red blade of light for attacks...

It has finally shifted from pseudo-fantasy back to modern martial arts style.

This is a true fantasy limited-time experience card.

【00:01】

As the countdown ended, everything went black before Li Zheng's eyes, the ground beneath his feet disappeared, and he, along with Miriel and Xiaoying behind him, began to fall.

"Are we being teleported to the outer city?"

Li Zheng turned his head, and apart from not being able to see anything, he didn't seem to feel any discomfort.

However, the teleportation process took far too long.

He subconsciously tried to glance at the time on the panel, but apart from the panel used by Preys' Eye to provide text information, all other system panels belonging to the Matrix Survival Game had completely disappeared.

"..."

"..."

"..."

Li Zheng remained in the endless darkness, not knowing how much time had passed, when he finally felt the solid touch of his feet touching the ground.

Before his vision returned, he first heard a muffled sound, seemingly coming from some kind of electronic loudspeaker.

"They call us bugs, but only we know that to deal with those guys, you have to give up all your biological characteristics and discard unnecessary emotions!"

Otherwise, we will never see the dawn of victory!
Only our research is correct!

(End of this chapter)